This is a static copy of In the Rose Garden, which existed as the center of the western Utena fandom for years. Enjoy. :)
I found a thread somewhere where they put the MBIT personality types of the SKU cast, though their post is so scattered, I'll just post the others later (or you can post them if you found out about them =p)
MBIT is a type of personaly test (Wiki) which determine your personality and how you view the world.
Anthy Himemiya is an ISFJ, which says they have the intense longing to be needed, and often underappreciated and taken advantage, even when they give their undying loyalty and high quality of work.
Utena Tenjou however is an ENTP. The "clever" part surprised me, but all the other facts are quite accurate about her.
Optimist who, if gotten small set backs becomes irritated and impatient, is a rule breaker, likes to get into arguements, friendly, etc.
Though, what I got to say was how Ikuni got their personality order right with the Relationship Pair
ISFJ x ENTP have an ANIMA relationship, in which both think the other is inferior function of themselves. It's pretty interesting
I'll add more of the others soon, what type of personality and relationships they have with each other
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vedy vedy intersting. i just had to read that like 5 times over to get it. where do you people get this kind of knowledge?!
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Shinolala2 wrote:
vedy vedy intersting. i just had to read that like 5 times over to get it. where do you people get this kind of knowledge?!
Must be all the colloidal-silver in the bottled water we all drink.
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Sorry about the late update! Here it is!
Nanami Kiryuu is an ENFJ which says they are tremendouly charismatic and sometimes use this power to manipulate people. Though, sometimes they get neglected by insensitive individuals.
Saionji and Juri are suprisingly both the same ESFJ (well, I think they are the only duelist that hit Anthy)
They give importance to tradition, they enjoy being incharge, and they get easily hurt emotionally too.
They both think the world is a dangerous place to be.
Miki is also the same as Himemiya, I guess it is right.. He gives warm milkshake to his sister still every night even after telling him to shove off.
Touga Kiryuu is an ENTJ. It says they have a natural charm, but are insensitive as cult leader. They also require little encouragements for their plans to feel the need to execute them. They often see what needs to be done (due to their decesiveness) and assign roles to their fellowmen.
Chu Chu is an ESFP which are people who just wants to have FUN, and entertain people. They sometimes think and talk in more of a spider-web approach. They jump from thought to thought in mid-sentence, touching here or there in a manner that's almost incoherent to the listener, but will eventually cover the waterfront by skipping on impulse from one piece of information to another.
That's all I can find for now :3
Let's look at their relationships xD
Anthy x Chu Chu = (Contrast) makes sense..
Anthy/Miki x Saionji/Juri = (Pal) work and play well together: minimal natural type conflict
Nanami x Touga = (Companion) similar modes of expression: bear each other's company well
Nanami x Miki/Anthy = (Counterpart) perform similar functions in totally different realms
Miki x Anthy = (Identity) same types: a typological mirror-image
Saionji x Touga = (Enigma) a puzzle: totally foreign in nearly every facet
Touga x Utena = (Complement) compatible strengths with opposite emphases
Saionji/Juri x Utena = (Supplement) like Pal, but functions are farther removed: each can add to the other's strengths
Chu Chu x Utena = Enigma
Nanami x Utena = (Advisor) each has an area of insight that the other lacks
Nanami x Juri/Saionji = (Neighbor) arrive at the same place by variant processes
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Stephanie wrote:
Touga x Utena = (Complement) compatible strengths with opposite emphases
How about Juri x Touga?
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^Same as Saionji x Touga
Though, MBIT has had criticisms of it's own.. Though my personal opinion is, mine (ENFP) describes me perfectly.. Very, unlike any other personality test..
Juri x Touga barely has any relationships
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Most interesting, Stephanie - thanks for posting all this info. I love Myers Briggs, and indeed all personality/behavioral theory. And you've even gone and combined it with SKU.
Not important but let me add that I'm an ENFP too. *gasp & huggles to fellow ENFP* (although my P is like only one point above my J). So of course I'm curious to know...which Utena character would be the best romantic and which would be the best friendship possibility for our personality? And who would our enemy be? And would we get on? Do ENFPs like each other? I have heard that "NF" personalities tend to be drawn to/good friends with other NFs...I wonder if that's really true?
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Stephanie wrote:
^Same as Saionji x Touga
Though, MBIT has had criticisms of it's own.. Though my personal opinion is, mine (ENFP) describes me perfectly.. Very, unlike any other personality test..
Juri x Touga barely has any relationships
True. >.> But I was hoping to get the MBIT result for curiosity's sake. xD
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I would have pegged Juri for an Introvert. Just because she's introverted doesn't mean she can't be a leader. There are a lot of CEOs that are I's and not E's. The rest does sound about right though. But that's just me using my limited knowledge of MBIT.
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True. >.> But I was hoping to get the MBIT result for curiosity's sake. xD
If you guys wanna know yours, here's a test
Going back to Anthy x Saionji or Anthy x Juri, besides Miki having a good relationship with either Juri or Saionji (since they're the same anyway), the fact that it was described they "work and play together" means Anthy's role to the Rose Bride slapping meanies are compatible..
Well, I did state this somewhere, but during the interview, Ikuni said Saionji stereotypes as one of the traditional Japanese males. Doing what they want, while their wives obediently follows without question..
Well, I didn't really put them into their own MBIT, I saw a thread where they put anime characters into MBITs..
I wonder what Wakaba, Kozue, Tatsuya, Mikage, Shiori and most specially Akio is into.. (I feel like Akio is the same as Touga, kinda.. But I think he's a little more.. manipulative and deeper..)
For added lulz!!
Touga x Anthy = (Novelty) intriguingly different: interestingly so
Touga x Chu Chu = (Supplement)
Chu Chu x Saionji = (Compliment) say wha..
Offtopic: ENFPxENFP you say? Anything with the same MBIT is like Miki x Anthy, Identity
Edit: Alithea, yeah, I know.. Like they say, this test ain't accurate.. Nor can be the one I took the SKU cast from who knows? lol, even I somehow think Saionji is an introvert, I think he just stays in his dojo and practice kendo.. and when he was expelled, he only stayed with Wakaba..
Last edited by Stephanie (12-12-2008 11:08:17 AM)
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Interesting. I myself am an INTP. Very intriguing analysis.
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I've found I rate INTP or INTJ depending on whether I'm feeling reasonably optimistic (INTP) or depressed/cynical (INTJ) when I take the test.
Utena seems like an ENFP to me, not an ENTP, but I'm no expert.
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I'm a INFP. I took the MBIT for work. It's actually pretty accurate for me. I do switch from being a P or a J depending, but right now I've been rather strong with P.
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I'm an INFJ myself. Let's see who I'd get along with, and who I wouldn't.
LN x Anthy/Miki = Neighbor
Hmm. Anthy and I probably won't think much of each other until the end of the series. Same with Miki, apparently, though I’d probably be more drawn to him than I would Anthy. My thirst for knowledge would be going off if I saw him playing the piano or doing homework. Anthy's intelligence isn't obvious, so I'd probably only say hello to her in the mornings and then rush off to ask Miki for math help.
LN x Utena = Pedagogue
I'd treat Utena like I do everyone else -- a parent and a child at the same time. Which is strange, yes, but my relationships with most are very… pedagogue-ish.
LN x Nanami = Pal
I'll be honest: I'm surprised that I'd be good friends with Nanami. She's loud and mean-spirited and incredibly manipulative, whish are qualities I don't particularly like in a person. However, I'm sure I'd have sympathy for her, even if I'd think not-very-nice thoughts about her in my head. XD
LN x Saionji/Juri = Counterpart
Again, I probably wouldn't think much of them. I might do the occasional social thing with them, but probably because a buddy of mine dragged me into it, and I only agreed so I could spend time with my pal [lolol nanami]. I'd enjoy their company for a while, but feel relieved when I'm home.
LN x Touga = Tribesman
I... don't think I'd like Touga much, if at all. I'd admire his clothes from afar, perhaps, and think he is attractive, and occasionally go shopping with him, but I wouldn't want to spend extended periods of time with him. Especially not alone. Which is just as well, because I don't think he'd like me much, anyway.
Last edited by Lady Nilamarthiel (12-13-2008 02:05:13 AM)
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I would put Utena more at an ESFP. S because she deals primarily with what's in front of her and has weak inference skills, and F because she forms attachments pretty quickly.
Ohtori is probably INTJ. He might SEEM like he's good with people, but he basically never sees more than 1 or 2 people at a time, and the one time you see him with 3 other people (when dealing with Utena, Wakaba, and Himemiya in the same room) is the only time he really freaks out.
Mikage Souji is INTP all the way.
Congratulations, Satyreyes, you're an anime villain!
Last edited by zevrem (04-15-2013 08:11:54 PM)
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Interesting, I always had Utena pegged as an ENFP, but it does make a lot of sense to say she's an ESFP. They both fit her pretty well
I agree that Akio is an INTJ, because I do think he's introverted in the sense that he prefers to keep his manipulating, er, socializing to a small group with a larger depth, which is what introversion is. I do think that if he wanted he could deal with large groups, but you know, he just enjoys the one on one approach. When all your attention is on one person, it's more fun to watch them squirm
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ENFP and ESFP seems to be very similar. I tried looking up differences between ESFP and ENFP, but it's hard to keep track of who is which.; I guess ESFPs are more direct, practical and literal, which sounds like Utena. ENFPs are more imaginative and will try to look for meaning/motivation.
Akio definitely strikes me as an introvert, but what about Dios?
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Nilamarthiel wrote:
I'm an INFJ myself. Let's see who I'd get along with, and who I wouldn't.
I am too! Totally surprised to see another INFJ--we're generally pretty rare.
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I'm an INTP, so according to that site I'd be Saionji's anima, Miki's supplement, and Touga's contrast. (What's an anima?) It makes more sense that Miki and I would go well together despite my crush on Saionji.
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I think anima and animus are men's and women's inner feminine and masculine side, respectively. Though the Typelogic site has this to say:
Anima fits Dr. Beebe's description of the anima/anumus: each is the other's inferior (4th) function
I'm an INFP, so I would be Saionji's (and Juri's)... cohort. Although I'm not sure about their types, they strike me as more introverted. I would be Chuchu's and Utena's counterpart (if we go with ESFP for her), Nanami's contrast, Miki's suitemate, Touga's pedagogue (er, and he mine I guess), Mikage's companion. Akio would be... advisor (well, we all know how fond he is of giving advice from watching his interactions with Utena, so at least there's that. Not so sure he would like my advice, though. It would probably include not wearing his hair in a mullet.).
Last edited by Lurv (04-16-2013 03:14:02 PM)
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I'm an INFP too. Don't know how I'd feel about Akio being my advisor I can see him prying off my rose tinted glasses when I get overly optimistic and whatnot, but we'd hit a dead end when I called bad touch I can excuse him for the mullet if we accept that the show was made in the ninties, but he's been around a long enough time you'd figure he'd avoid all of the trends that inevitably look ridiculous in a few years. But he is a flashy show off, and Ohtori Academy doesn't seem to have a solid concept of time anyway...
After more thoroughly looking through the ENFP and ESFP types, I'm going to have to agree that Utena is an ESFP. Headcanon changed. It's easy to look at her character and her fixation on the past and fairytale tropes and identity uncertainties, and see her as an NF, overlooking the fact that besides that being her motivation she isn't really consciously thinking about her past or motivations nearly as much as anyone else in the cast. She really is a here and now type of person in the way that she operates and she prefers simple and direct solutions and explanations to deeper more thought provoking ones.
Dios is harder to type because we don't get that much screen time of him. I think for sure he's an introvert and he's a feeler not a thinker. My guess would be INFP, I get that vibe from him. He wants to make the world a better place, with an optimism that he makes a difference in the end. He drives himself into the ground for his high standards to his ideal. He wants to help everyone and make everyone happy and places that above logic or who's right or wrong, instead focusing on how a person feels as a measure of the situation (ie, placing alone on Christmas eve on par with being attacked by a monster) Sounds like an INFP to me...
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Speaking of motivation, I've also been trying to figure out the SKU cast's Enneagram types. Not sure if I should start a topic for that or not...
Edit: And I forgot to say, Utena's reaction to C-ko especially makes me think ESFP. She takes the plays literally and offers the most obvious solutions. Compared to Tokiko, who "gets it". Granted, Tokiko is also older than Utena, so you'd hope she's more insightful, but... Man, Mikage was really off in mistaking Utena for her.
Last edited by Lurv (06-11-2013 08:01:21 PM)
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I don"t know if anyone's attempted to figure out the cast enneagram types, sounds interesting to me I'm not as familiar with the enneagram types as with MBIT, but I'll definitely brush up a little then add my opinions
Going back once again to the ESFP topic, I think that might be what makes Utena come across as so... less than intelligent Not to say that in general having a sensing trait over an intuitive trait makes you any less intelligent or even appears that way, but in a cast full with mostly intuitive or judging types who like to go over all the things in the past and think deeply about everything in a complex deep way or act with logic and reason, Utena might look a little simple for looking at the obvious and not delving deeper then jumping in with her feeling trait. A lot of it is that she's kind of dense, but I think being filled in a cast with either an intuitive or judging trait might make her look worse by comparison. She gets a lot of that interpretation in-universe (which isn't completely untrue ) but she's the only SF in a decent sized cast and I think there's a lack of understanding for that personality type.
just mulling over the implications of my new headcanon
But I was also thinking of this, I remember reading somewhere that Anthy almost comes across like a really broken INFP, and it got me thinking, has anyone tried typing her assuming she's in her shadow functions? Do we even know where her shadow ends and her true type begins? man, she's a MBIT typing nightmare
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BlackBeforeRed wrote:
But I was also thinking of this, I remember reading somewhere that Anthy almost comes across like a really broken INFP, and it got me thinking, has anyone tried typing her assuming she's in her shadow functions? Do we even know where her shadow ends and her true type begins? man, she's a MBIT typing nightmare
I got to agree with that! We only get to see a little bit of her "true" self... Well, putting it that way feels a bit wrong, because even as a rose bride her emotions sometimes shine through, but you know what I mean.
About Utena, I don't necessarily think her simplicity is always a bad thing. Sometimes the simple solution is the best, and her commentary on the shadow plays aren't really wrong.
I've been reading a lot about the Enneagram lately. I love how it looks at the underlying motivation and it's easier to memorize the different enneagram types than the Jung-personalities since they're numbered and there's only nine of them. At first glance it seemed simple, actually, but with wing types and instinctual stackings and health-levels it makes for a lot of variation. I'm still not sure what I would type Utena as, honestly. (But then I'm not 100% sure about myself either, though I have an idea.)
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I think Utena's simplicity is the reason she made it as far as she did in the game and caused the revolution The bias is mostly in universe itself, they don't see the value in Utena's face value approach. Even though not thinking too much is what allows her to be undistracted and win duels 99% of the time I love her takes on C-Ko's plays, even if they're metaphors for a more complicated plot, the solutions Utena gives are solid solutions to the ones presented, no one could say it's bad advice "Take em' off"
As for Enneagram Types excuse the wall of text, I've been researching
Utena I type as a 6, The Loyalist
The committed, security-oriented type. Sixes are reliable, hard-working, responsible, and trustworthy. Excellent "troubleshooters," they foresee problems and foster cooperation, but can also become defensive, evasive, and anxious—running on stress while complaining about it. They can be cautious and indecisive, but also reactive, defiant and rebellious. They typically have problems with self-doubt and suspicion. At their Best: internally stable and self-reliant, courageously championing themselves and others.
Fits her through and through. Trying to fix everyone's problems, staying loyal to people even when it's downright stupid to do so ( Note: I find the use of "will go down with the ship" used on the description page to be a perfect explanation for hauling your half dead ass to save the girl that just impaled you ) and her constant identity struggle as well as most of her character is explained well here:
Until they can get in touch with their own inner guidance, Sixes are like a ping-pong ball that is constantly shuttling back and forth between whatever influence is hitting the hardest in any given moment. Because of this reactivity, no matter what we say about Sixes, the opposite is often also as true. They are both strong and weak, fearful and courageous, trusting and distrusting, defenders and provokers, sweet and sour, aggressive and passive, bullies and weaklings, on the defensive and on the offensive, thinkers and doers, group people and soloists, believers and doubters, cooperative and obstructionistic, tender and mean, generous and petty—and on and on. It is the contradictory picture that is the characteristic “fingerprint” of Sixes, the fact that they are a bundle of opposites.
And what I think happens after the revolution
The biggest problem for Sixes is that they try to build safety in the environment without resolving their own emotional insecurities. When they learn to face their anxieties, however, Sixes understand that although the world is always changing and is, by nature uncertain, they can be serene and courageous in any circumstance. And they can attain the greatest gift of all, a sense of peace with themselves despite the uncertainties of life.
For all the difficulties in typing Anthy I mentioned, here her type stood out to me, she tries to appear as a type 2, but behind that front lies what I think to be a type 5, The Investigator
Fives are alert, insightful, and curious. They are able to concentrate and focus on developing complex ideas and skills. Independent, innovative, and inventive, they can also become preoccupied with their thoughts and imaginary constructs. They become detached, yet high-strung and intense. They typically have problems with eccentricity, nihilism, and isolation. At their Best: visionary pioneers, often ahead of their time, and able to see the world in an entirely new way.
I know it's not as obvious as Juri's, but this is pretty close to how I see the "real" Anthy. When we see her, even in her acting like a type 2, there is a mixture of detachment and curiosity beneath it. She makes the cast her guinea pigs because she wants to watch them suffer and learn what makes them suffer. She takes a joy in knowing these people so well she can say two words and get them so enraged they take it out on her face. I think this is why I don't see her as "bad" per say, I see this as her taking a natural curiosity of people in a dark direction because it's the direction she's been led in by the life she's lived. After all, she makes Utena her guinea pig too, she loves making her flustered and becomes a master at it by the black rose saga. I honestly think the reason Anthy becomes so attached to Utena is because she couldn't 100% figure her out.
But what most leads me to believe this is her type is this
Behind Fives’ relentless pursuit of knowledge are deep insecurities about their ability to function successfully in the world. Fives feel that they do not have an ability to do things as well as others. But rather than engage directly with activities that might bolster their confidence, Fives “take a step back” into their minds where they feel more capable. Their belief is that from the safety of their minds they will eventually figure out how to do things—and one day rejoin the world
Hiding in a coffin you say?
I have interpretations for the rest of the cast, and I'll post them later
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